This year, WBEZ is sharing the full audio of some of our past holiday favorites. This is the second audio story in our series. Click here to listen to a beloved children’s story read aloud with holiday fanfare.
On Dec. 25, 1986, Studio A host Ken Davis visited Chicago Mayor Harold Washington’s apartment for a special Christmas morning broadcast. This Christmas would turn out to be the late Mayor’s last, making the radio program an important time capsule.
Washington was gracious enough to allow WBEZ into his home. Davis and Washington discussed everything from race relations to the upcoming 1987 mayoral election. They even played their favorite holiday music.
While only 45 minutes of the two-hour broadcast still exists — and there are technical issues with the audio connection and quality at the beginning — the piece is a charming reminder of the scrappy nature of creating live radio at the time. Hearing it today transports listeners immediately to the late 1980s and is proof of the intimate power of radio.
For more on the life of Harold Washington, check out this look at his life, written in 2022 on the 35th anniversary of his untimely death in office.
Click on the red audio player above to listen to the special.
